A sick goose-beaked whale was found in Sotra, Norway on Saturday. It was so sick that it had to be euthanized, reports NRK. When researchers opened its stomach, they found 30 plastic bags inside as well as many small pieces of plastic. The whale continued to swim to shore as the fire department spent hours trying to get it out into deep waters. They assumed that the whale must be sick due its strange behaviour and so they contacted the Department of Wildlife Conservation.

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The whale got stuck in shallow waters repeatedly despite help from both the fire department and the Department of Wildlife Conservation. “The whale was sick, and therefore it had to be euthanized. We are researching it now to find out exactly why it was sick,” Eivind Sangolt from the Department of Wildlife Conservation tells NRK. It took 5 people and 6 hours to dismember the remains. Large quantities of small plastic as well as candy wrappers and plastic bread bags were found in addition to the 30 plastic bags, according to NRK. Zoologist Terje Lislevand tells NRK that the whale was in a lot of pain for a long time. Its digestive system was completely depleted of nutrients.